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Parko, Fitzgibbons ready to ring the Bells

Chairman of the board ... Joel Parkinson is out for a repeat at Bells Beach this year.

Kirstin Scholtz: ASP

The weight of history will not be as heavy, but Joel Parkinson hopes it still repeats as he chases back-to-back Rip Curl Pro surfing titles at Victoria's Bells Beach this week.

Three-time Bells winner Parkinson won an epic final at the 50th event last year, beating good friend Mick Fanning in sensational Easter Sunday surf and with a perfect 10 on his last wave.

The 30-year-old Queenslander would join the ranks of the all-time greats with a fourth Rip Curl Pro men's win.

Only Mark Richards and Kelly Slater have won Bells four times.

For all his laid-back style and likeable demeanour, Parkinson is a keen student of surfing history and still gets chills thinking about his 2011 win and the roll-call of past champions who gathered to watch the anniversary event.

"It's got so much history to me, and so many good memories," Parkinson said of Bells.

"Last year against Mick, it was a big, epic battle. It's going to be hard to match those waves and that swell, but if I could match that result I'd be happy.

"It was me and Mick, it was the 50th Bells, there was so much history walking down for the final with photos of past champions.

"It kind of felt like I was a part of history and it probably won't sink in until I'm into my 50s."

The death of three-time Bells champion Michael Peterson last week has added another layer of emotion to this year's competition.

Peterson, 59, died of a heart attack. He won Bells in 1973, 1974 and 1975.

Now in his 12th season on the tour, Parkinson is still chasing a maiden world title after finishing runner-up three times.

He was eliminated in the quarter-finals of the season-opening Quiksilver Pro at the Gold Coast, but remains confident he is on track for a good year.

"I feel really calm, really good. A title is definitely the goal, but it's a long way away right now," Parkinson said.

"There's a lot of surfing to be done before you start thinking about world titles."